carry out gratuity

[picasso]

You guys ever leave a tip on the bill? I'm torn about this, they didn't really bring me anything or refill my drink.
I usually add a few bucks if the girl is cute.:O

[Sooner24]

Not on carry out.

[sooner ngintunr]

so you're admitting youre a sexist?:D

I never tip on takeout.....unless she's really hawt.

[picasso]

so you're admitting youre a sexist?:D

I never tip on takeout.....unless she's really hawt.

hey-o!:D

[King Crimson]

on carry-out i'll tip a buck, regardless of the amount. one buck. it's a tip, i'm happy to have my food, i'm a restaurant vet so i understand. thank you very much. for take-out i'm not tipping 15% or 20%, there's no logic to that.

[picasso]

on carry-out i'll tip a buck, regardless of the amount. one buck. it's a tip, i'm happy to have my food, i'm a restaurant vet so i understand. thank you very much. for take-out i'm not tipping 15% or 20%, there's no logic to that.

that's my view too man but why even give us the option? the ticket should have no tip line.

[Turd_Ferguson]

that's my view too man but why even give us the option? the ticket should have no tip line.I just draw a line through the tip part of the ticket. Ain't pay'n somethin for nuth'n.

[sooner ngintunr]

that's my view too man but why even give us the option? the ticket should have no tip line.

Its automatic. Kind of like when you leave a cash tip at the table and pay the bill with a CC at the front counter. Instead of writing a zero, I always write in "cash" so the hostess doesn't think I stiffed 'em.

[King Crimson]

i have a buddy who's in a wheelchair and servers/counter people always have to swipe and sign his card for him...and they always ask him: "do you want to put a tip on?"...in this really leading, obvious way. so, he has to say "yes" or look like a jerk-off out loud, in public. he's a real cheapskate, too; so, it annoys the F out of him.

[Turd_Ferguson]

that's my view too man but why even give us the option? the ticket should have no tip line.because there will alway's be sucker's that'll fill it out.:D

[picasso]

Its automatic. Kind of like when you leave a cash tip at the table and pay the bill with a CC at the front counter. Instead of writing a zero, I always write in "cash" so the hostess doesn't think I stiffed 'em.

yeah i know but I still kinda feel like a cheapo for not leaving anything.

btw, draw some zeros and then put a line through it. I've heard stories...

[King Crimson]

yeah i know but I still kinda feel like a cheapo for not leaving anything.

btw, draw some zeros and then put a line through it. I've heard stories...

well, that's why i have the "one buck policy" re: cheapo. it's simple, clean, and Ockham-esque*. i left a tip, if they want to complain or make a sour face i can point out they didn't do anything and i'm still giving them a buck out of the kindness of my heart.

i've done the credit cards a few times for my buddy Giuseppe's restaurant when they go on vacation and you should never leave the tip line blank. draw a line, an X, something. it's too easy and "too human" a process for someone needing cash to pay the rent in a week to turn that blank into a number or 7.50$ into 75.00$...with a few pen strokes and creative angles to turn 7 into a 2 and a 5 into an 8.

*Ockham's razor is kinda BS, really.

[sooner ngintunr]

yeah i know but I still kinda feel like a cheapo for not leaving anything.

btw, draw some zeros and then put a line through it. I've heard stories...

good advice, like I said I write in the word cash or leave a tip there, I never put the number zero.

Honestly, would I notice on my CC bill at the end of the month if a certain place padded the bill 10 bucks by adding extra tip? Like 23 to 33 bucks? I would like to say yes but I know thats probably not true.

They'd have hell to pay (or at least their job, hopefully) if I did notice it though, because I only use my CC for food while im on business, so I'd still have the receipt bitches!! Plus I'm usually a 20- 25% tipper so I'd be xtra pissed.

[King Crimson]

i will say if you frequent a place a lot, a small tip (or the one buck policy) can help foster good-will as a "regular" which may/may not result in a bigger sandwich, not getting the goofy end-piece of the tomato etc. but it can't hurt.

[picasso]

i will say if you frequent a place a lot, a small tip (or the one buck policy) can help foster good-will as a "regular" which may/may not result in a bigger sandwich, not getting the goofy end-piece of the tomato etc. but it can't hurt.

yeah, I do this at a neighborhood joint we hit for carry-out on occasion.

I'm kind of a big deal around there.

[Turd_Ferguson]

yeah, I do this at a neighborhood joint we hit for carry-out on occasion.

I'm kind of a big deal around there.I have the same type thing going on for me, but the bastards at QuickTrip keep leav'n me 6 hour old hot dogs.:mad:

[LosAngelesSooner]

I always do. Usually 10% or a little under. For the person who put it all together.

Nothing more annoying than getting home and finding out that something was left out of the bag...so it's worth it to me to be known as a generous tipper in all circumstances.

[SteelCitySooner]

I always do. Usually 10% or a little under. For the person who put it all together.

Nothing more annoying than getting home and finding out that something was left out of the bag...so it's worth it to me to be known as a generous tipper in all circumstances.

Concur. Normally 10%. If the girl is cute maybe little more.

[Pricetag]

There are a lot of places now that carry it out to your car to lay on the pressure just a little thicker.

I don't get the logic of tipping for carry out. It's a standard service that the restaurant offers, and it's either right or it's not. I don't get the direct jump from a complaint to extra compensation.

[rainiersooner]

Always. $3 or $4 means more to the young kid than it does to me.

[beer4me]

Yes but only a couple of bucks or so. But I tip at least 25% on in house meals.

[Frozen Sooner]

I usually ask what the restaurant's policy on carry-out orders is: if they assign the carry-out "table" to someone for purposes of calculating tip reporting, then I'll add 10%. If they don't, I don't.

[badger]

There are some funny sites out there where people have asked tipping questions that attracted a LOT of angry pizza delivery drivers,waitresses, bartenders, etc.

Some places apparently pool tips, so the "cute girl" might not see all of your buck.

Some places require waitresses to share tips with both hostesses and bartenders, so your tip gets split even more.

Some places don't give tips to wait staff at all and your tip goes into the restaurant coffer.

Delivery drivers apparently have to pay for their own gas, so unless you tip, the driver's losing money delivering your food.

Oh... and people that don't tip? They are worse than Satan to these servers. To restaurant worker, a tip is mandatory, not just customary or a reward for good service - MAN-DA-TOR-Y. Your meal apparently isn't just the price on the menu (and the sale tax), but people who eat out must tip as well and consider it part of the cost of eating out.

Apparently this recession has made for some very stingy tippers, which make these sites go crazy. "If they can afford to eat out, then they can afford to tip!"

So, any restaurateurs around that can vouch for any of the above info?

[picasso]

well of course I'm going to tip a delivery guy.

and the cute girl actually getting the buck ain't the intention.

[King Crimson]

the problem is that 80% of the time the people who do "the extra work" on a take-out order aren't people who ever see gratuity money. that's waitstaff or, by default, the owners. it's the kitchen guys who are breaking routine and putting your stuff in to-go containers and probably doing most of the organization (for better, worse).

when you add 10-30%, you are just giving it to someone who probably had nothing to do with your meal minus maybe performing the Herculean task of swiping your credit card and assigning your ticket to their server number.

i've worked with a lot of waitstaff over the near decade i worked in upper end kitchens and they think they deserve 40% on each table because they wore the black bra underneath their pressed white uniform/oxford shirt or whatever. listening to them is pointless. they also they think have a really hard job when at the end of the night they've got 300$ cash for 4-5 hours of work.

i've waited tables many many times for a little cash or when my place needed someone in a pinch or a holiday like Valentine's or Parent's Weekend/graduation....and while dealing with people is supremely annoying and there are some things to learn about it and some people are better at it than others....people act they have bought you as a slave and will whine like a baby stung by wasps if their water glass isn't topped off every 3 minutes because that bottom 60% of the glass full of water somehow isn't good to drink...and "show-offs" who think if they treat their server like crap it makes them a big player......at some point it's still just carrying plates about 30 feet to tables.

in a table sitting, i'll tip 20-25% automatically because i understand, but the whining about tips is the siren song of server work. if you want to do your server a favor, don't park it at their table in a busy restaurant for half an hour after you're done eating/drinking. turnover is how they make their money, not the difference between 15% and 30% on your table.

[badger]

If anyone thinks demanding tips here is bad, you haven't vacationed overseas where American dollars are very, very valuable and hot commodities.

NP's and my honeymoon to Jamaica... wow. The people on our resort weren't allowed to hound tips, but EVERYwhere else, it was (imagine this in your best Jamaican accent) "It is customary to tip, m'lady."

We went to a river off the Blue Mountain and they were all about the American dollar for everything from sweet bananas to photos they snapped of you while you were falling in.

They were incredibly insulted if you didn't give them cash after remotely any type of service.

[Osce0la]

I worked at a Logan's a while back and they usually had the bartender working the take-outs. Meaning they would not only be mixing drinks and getting beers, they would also have to take/enter take out orders, and more times than not, have to go to the kitchen to get everything set up and get the take out order put in the bag an ready for you to pick up...

[GottaHavePride]

I waited tables for five summers during undergrad - I'll have a go. ;)


There are some funny sites out there where people have asked tipping questions that attracted a LOT of angry pizza delivery drivers,waitresses, bartenders, etc.

Some places apparently pool tips, so the "cute girl" might not see all of your buck.

This is true. Some places do that - it's like communist tipping.


Some places require waitresses to share tips with both hostesses and bartenders, so your tip gets split even more.

In my experience, places that do this don't also do the commmunist-tipping thing. And I only ever had to give 1% of my day's sales total to the cooks and 1.5% to the bartender. Not usually more than a few dollars. If I ever had to tip-out $10 to them, I made enough that day that I didn't care.


Some places don't give tips to wait staff at all and your tip goes into the restaurant coffer.

I've never heard of this. It seems sketchy. Most places pay waitstaff about $2.25 an hour and assume that tips make up the rest of what should be their minimum wage. If they don't allow servers to keep tips, they have to actually pay full minimum wage, which they hate.


Delivery drivers apparently have to pay for their own gas, so unless you tip, the driver's losing money delivering your food.

This also is true. I worked for Jimmy John's for all of 3 days. Hired me saying they wanted me as a manager, then put me out driving delivery? Thanks but no.


Oh... and people that don't tip? They are worse than Satan to these servers. To restaurant worker, a tip is mandatory, not just customary or a reward for good service - MAN-DA-TOR-Y. Your meal apparently isn't just the price on the menu (and the sale tax), but people who eat out must tip as well and consider it part of the cost of eating out.

Apparently this recession has made for some very stingy tippers, which make these sites go crazy. "If they can afford to eat out, then they can afford to tip!"

So, any restaurateurs around that can vouch for any of the above info?

I always thought the tip should reflect the quality of service - If I busted my ***, or if you're a "problem" customer (a ton of odd or special requests, unusually big party, heavy drinkers, messy little kids I have to clean up after, etc. etc.) or - usually - BOTH, then tip me for the effort. If I forgot to order a person's meal, neglected the table, or otherwise did a ****ty job, then let the tip reflect that.

NOTE: if you had a bad server, don't just not leave a tip at all. That just makes the server think you're a jackass that doesn't tip and - in their mind - justifies their ****ty treatment of you. Leave then a nickel very obviously - they can't think you just forgot to pick it up. Maybe point it out with a little note. That tells them that you gave serious thought to leaving them a tip and decided that's what they were worth. Better yet, leave their nickel with the manager on your way out. :D

[Osce0la]

in a table sitting, i'll tip 20-25% automatically because i understand, but the whining about tips is the siren song of server work. if you want to do your server a favor, don't park it at their table in a busy restaurant for half an hour after you're done eating/drinking. turnover is how they make their money, not the difference between 15% and 30% on your table.

I hated when people did that crap - and many times it was more like parking it for an hour after they finished eating, leaving a $2 tip...

[Pricetag]

NP's and my honeymoon to Jamaica... wow. The people on our resort weren't allowed to hound tips, but EVERYwhere else, it was (imagine this in your best Jamaican accent) "It is customary to tip, m'lady."
Heh, the guys at the airport didn't even say that much. They just stuck out their hand and said, "Tip."

Glad to see King Crimson chime in on this--you don't see many folks who have worked in the kitchen and waited tables.

I was a cook at a pizza delivery joint, and I have absolutely no sympathy for pizza delivery drivers. Those guys were the laziest, bitchiest, money-grubbing-est weasels I've ever been around. They would never hesitate to bend each other over trying to skip to the best tippers, and the squabbling that resulted was epic.

I don't know if they lose money if they don't get tips or not--I know that they all make above minimum wage, unlike waiters, and they do get paid mileage. I know that they cleaned up. They all made very good money for what they were doing, and it blew my mind the way that they hated the customers who did not tip according to what they expected.

[badger]

This thread is fun. I would star it, but I was a lazy bum that didn't bother changing out the credit card digits on paypal when the card expired last month, so bye bye starring power.

I am one of those customers that gets food quickly via delivery since I always tip... and it's pretty obvious the driver knows it when they arrive. Their smile is a little bit brighter. Their greeting is a little bit friendlier. Their food is... well, the food is the same as it always is, but I imagine it's hotter because it arrived so quickly.

For delivery drivers that do receive mileage, I've heard that they don't receive enough to cover the escalating cost of gas and maintenance of their vehicle.

As for the "not receiving tips" part, I think it comes from credit card tipping amounts as opposed to stuffing cash in the server's hand. With a middle man (the restaurant) between your tip money and the server, it's easier for the tip to not arrive in full to the intended person.

I have worked with catering people before as a waitress, but I don't expect tips for things like that... I just expect some manners from the guests. My expectations were too high :rolleyes:

[C&CDean]

Take out? WTF is that? Is that where you go to Chilis and they carry it to your car like on TV? Or are you talking about when you call a Chinese joint and you go inside and pick up the food?

I've never done the curbside thing so I don't know. I never tip the Chinese joint. I do leave $1 with the girls who get stuck working the drive-through at the Sonic in Noble when I pull through for a breakfast burrito though. I figure they're being forced to work the window rather than wait on cars, so I give them a tip. In this case, the $1 turns out to be about a 40% tip.

[stoops the eternal pimp]

I have never done the carry out thing...

[King Crimson]

Heh, the guys at the airport didn't even say that much. They just stuck out their hand and said, "Tip."

Glad to see King Crimson chime in on this--you don't see many folks who have worked in the kitchen and waited tables.


well, i certainly thought it was beneath me or kind of a "stunt" (hehe) and at the very least took a lot of crap from the other kitchen dudes....but, also when i was sous-cheffing you inherited some managerial type responsibilities that extended to the front of the house on Sundays and Mondays when the regular honchos had a day off and it was better if you knew the lay of the land.

for a time, it was my plan in life to be the Jackie Robinson of the skycap industry, and break the color barrier at the airport.

[badger]

Oh, and whenever the Sunday church crowds are mentioned on tip forums, the servers (and server alumni) go in full meltdown mode. :D

[King Crimson]

I have worked with catering people before as a waitress, but I don't expect tips for things like that... I just expect some manners from the guests. My expectations were too high :rolleyes:

catering is a gruesome business. it's hard enough to make money with food (labor costs are high, and your product is losing value the second you sign for it...since food goes bad)....without the 300% markup on liquor, no way most restaurants make any money. with catering there are all kinds of ancillary costs like transportation, your equipment, etc. you live and die kind of by word of mouth...there's no "walk-in" traffic, that sort of thing.

i've seen plenty of talented, enthusiastic culinarians and wine people who want to "go on their own" and lose a ton of $$$ going that route. but, they all have a sweet van and an LLC after they throw in a towel.

[Collier11]

As a former waiter/bartender you should leave something, the person who rings you up still had to put the order together for you.

Now obviously you dont need to leave 15% but a buck or two is nice for the extra work

[badger]

Here (http://www.stainedapron.com/celebs.htm)'s a fun page.

[Pricetag]

It's pathetic that the list even exists, but the fact that Switzer is on the "scum" list proves that these folks are a bunch of POS's.

[Collier11]

I can confirm Switz! He came in one night when I was bartending and had atleast 6 grapefruit and grey goose drinks, had a bill of around $40 and tipped $3

[Chuck Bao]

It depends. If there is a 10% service charge already added on, then just a buck. If there is no service charge, I will tip 2-3 bucks. Okay, I'm a cheapo in the second scenario, but they still seem to appreciate it and remember me.

[badger]

I can confirm Switz! He came in one night when I was bartending and had atleast 6 grapefruit and grey goose drinks, had a bill of around $40 and tipped $3

Someone was quoted in the student newspaper a few years ago calling King Barry a cheapskate tipper and he was so upset that he wrote a Letter to the Editor denying the cheapskate charge.

Perhaps he just doesn't think about tipping. Before I was professionally employed (as opposed to supervising the cash register during college summers), I was probably guilty of not calculating a fair tip.

[Collier11]

For someone who has lots of money like Switz, he knows what is and isnt a good tip. I dont even care if he woulda tipped the standard 15% but I got his butt good and drunk like he wanted and all for $3 :D

[49r]

My theory goes like this.

If I pay before I eat (or even get) my food...no tip. Especially if you have the ghey "karma" cup with change in it by the register.

If I pay *after* I eat my food which was brought to me at my table by someone else...generally start with 20% tip, which increases as service improves.

It's not set in stone but my general rule. I, too, worked at a restaurant for 5 years to put myself through college.

[49r]

Starbucks? NO TIP!!!

[GottaHavePride]

As for the "not receiving tips" part, I think it comes from credit card tipping amounts as opposed to stuffing cash in the server's hand. With a middle man (the restaurant) between your tip money and the server, it's easier for the tip to not arrive in full to the intended person.

Well, at the place I worked, when you were turning in your cash at the end of the day, they adjusted the amount we owed the till according to our credit card sales - including tips. So on a day when virtually all your sales were on cards, the manager would have to give me cash before I left to cover all my credit card tips. The wait staff could double-check his math (or not, if they were lazy) right there.